Kris Fisher
Encyclopedia
Francis "Kris" Fisher is a fictional character
from the long-running Channel 4
soap opera
Hollyoaks
, played by Gerard McCarthy
. The character first appeared on-screen in September 2006 and left in August 2010 after McCarthy quit the show. He is noted for his storylines involving the PEP
drug, a bisexual love triangle, his outlandish personality and being the only permanent cross dressing
character in a British soap opera. Following his departure, it was announced that McCarthy would return in November 2010 for a short stint.
, Pete Burns
and Pete Bennett
from Big Brother
— a bit of a Boy George
character." The character was initially intended for a 12 episode stint, but after producer saw how popular he was with viewers they decided to make him a permanent character.
Auditions were held for the part of Kris with actor Gerard McCarthy hailing from Belfast
, Northern Ireland
going onto secure the part. McCarthy had wanted a role in the show because actor Shaun Williamson
had advised him to get a part to boost his profile. After initial screen tests with casting directors he was called in to meet Bryan Kirkwood who gave McCarthy the outline of the character and later he was contracted with the show long-term.
McCarthy considered leaving the series by Christmas 2008, but producers asked him to stay on to help portray a HIV storyline involving his on-screen brother.
In early 2009 speculation came from magazines that he was about to quit the series after McCarthy's statement of his character saying: "There comes a time when every character reaches a point when it's natural and believable for them to leave. I think Kris's end should be this summer after he graduates." McCarthy went on to confirm his plans to quit the series stating he wanted to do different projects. However in mid 2009 McCarthy revealed he had signed another year long contract with the show because he loves playing his part.
In 2009 McCarthy said of his character: "He is so 'out there', in your face and ready to shock at every turn. Every day he creates a new drama so who knows what the unconventional Kris will trigger." Discussing his character at length with The Belfast Telegraph he said "Kris is a non-conformist. If he wakes up in the morning and wants to dye his hair blue and stick a safety pin through his nose, then that's exactly what he'll do. The character is very colourful, but also very controversial". Going on to say: "He is what he is, a bolshy, ballsy lad from Belfast who doesn't give a damn. He doesn't care what people think about him. He goes out of his way to shock people and has so much confidence in himself, that no one can intimidate him. He's also very witty. I can be funny yeah, but I'm not quite as sharp as him. And of course, he can pull anyone he wants! I love Kris, he's a great character to play. When I come home from work every day, I have a smile on my face."
Kris' appearance has been a focal point of the character. At the time of auditioning for the role McCarthy perceived Kris' look to be gothic, but the casting team revealed that his look was to be aimed at provoking a reaction rather than a drag queen look, a mixture of celebrity styles taken from both Eddie Izzard
or Russell Brand
. McCarthy has also stated on one occasion that he doesn't believe his character is trying to cross dress or be a transvestite and rather simply creating his own unique style. McCarthy also helps to style Kris by trying to balance his look by using feminine parts along with other traditionally masculine items in the outfit. The Liverpool Echo
have also commented that dark eyeliner is the character's trademark.
One particular item of the character's wardrobe caused controversy when on-screen the he wore a LGBT
campaign T-shirt. Off-screen Stonewall
, a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity organisation, told The Guardian newspaper it had managed to get a character from the soap to wear their campaign T-shirt. The scenes drew criticism from an extremist Christian group claiming that soap operas are being 'lobbied' into pushing a politically correct view of modern Britain into their shows. Gary Nunn of Stonewall defended the scenes stating: "One of our key priorities is to promote fair coverage of lesbian and gay people in the media and we work with programme makers to reflect this, a recent example of this is our work with Hollyoaks where the character Kris Fisher wore a T-shirt with our campaign slogan: 'Some people are gay. Get over it!'."
(Glen Wallace
) was diagnosed with HIV, but had sex with Mercedes McQueen
(Jennifer Metcalfe
) numerous times. When Mercedes dumped Malachy, she sought comfort in Kris and the two ended up having sex together, unbeknown to Mercedes' possible HIV infection. When Malachy revealed that he had HIV to Kris, Kris admitted having sex with Mercedes, and subsequently rushed to the hospital to seek medical attention where he received Post-exposure prophylaxis
drugs that made him extremely ill to lower the chances of getting HIV
. He was later tested and got the clear and recovered from the medication. The use of PEP drugs was a first in British soap opera as at the time it was relatively new, and helped raise the awareness that there are precautions at lowering the risk of the disease available, post a potential infection.
One storyline for Kris has been a bisexual love triangle which resulted in a three way open relationship with Nancy Hayton
(Jessica Fox
) and Ravi Roy
(Stephen Uppal
).
(Zoe Lister
) and Will Hackett
(Oliver Farnworth
). He got into clashes with Joe from his first few scenes. He was also involved in the "The Dog" fire in which Sam Owen
(Lois Tammone) sets set alight, in which his friends Olivia Johnson
(Rochelle Gadd
) and Joe Spencer
(Matt Milburn) die. In later episodes Kris thinks he has HIV after Will Hack fools him into believing that his test results were positive. Later Kris started having sex with a guy called Nathan, but when his brother Malachy comes to Hollyoaks, he pretends Nathan is a friend and starts wearing masculine clothes, as Malachy doesn't know that he is bisexual or that he likes to wear women's clothes. Jessica tries to persuade him to dress up for Malachy but when he does, his brother disowns him. He takes comfort with Jess and they end up in bed together. Kris later leaves and returns a number of months later. Malachy also returns later to work on a construction job. While they still don't not agree on most topics, Malachy grows to accept his brother, and when Malachy leaves in January 2008, Kris is somewhat sad to see him go.
Another storyline the character was involved in a carbon monoxide poisoning plot. Danny Valentine
(David Judge
) had made a faulty repair to a boiler, causing a carbon monoxide leak that left Kris, John Paul McQueen
(James Sutton
), Katy Fox
(Hannah Tointon
), Summer
(Summer Strallen
), Zak Ramsey
(Kent Riley
), Carmel McQueen
(Gemma Merna
), Russ Owen
(Stuart Manning
), and other students unconscious. Justin Burton
(Chris Fountain
) later arrived to try and win Katy back and instead found everyone unconscious. After ringing Danny and finding that the boiler faulty, the pair carried everyone out saving them in the process. The storyline which had touched a very common issue in everyday life, helped save the life of regular Hollyoaks viewer Beth Cordingly, who was watching the episode when she was experiencing the same ordeal.
Kris later starts dating Summer Shaw, and his old flame Jess leaves the village with Darren Osborne's
(Ashley Taylor Dawson
) gambling winnings. His relationship with Summer soon ends when she falls in love with O.B. (Darren Jeffries
).
When John Paul listens to Kris telling a sexually confused teenager to get a life and stop thinking they are special, he calls into the radio show. Kris then needles him about his relationship with Craig Dean
(Guy Burnett). John Paul and Elliot Bevan
(Garnon Davies
) go to the station to confront Kris, but a blackout ends any attempt to resolve the issue. John Paul and Elliot begin interrupting Kris' broadcasts with a pirate program which makes fun of him. This continues off and on for over a month until January 2008. Kris finds out he might lose his radio show because the pirates are more popular. When John Paul tries to start up an organization for LGBT
students at HCC, Kris initially doesn't get along with him, but they become friends. Kris soon realises John Paul has a mystery crush, and tries to figure out who it is. He is surprised to learn the man is Father Kieron Hobbs (Jake Hendriks
), who tells Kris he also has feelings for John Paul.
During the second half of 2008 a new storyline was brewing which saw Kris' father become the victim of a life insurance scam. On-screen his father, Eamon Fisher (Derek Halligan) turns up at Halls wanting to see Kris. Once Kris returns, Eamon is shocked to see his son and what he is wearing. Kris then tell Eamon that he doesn't want anything to do with him and tells Elliot that he can have him as a father instead. After days of getting nowhere, Eamon leaves and tries to get a room to stay in at the pub. Upon failing, he retreats to the street and has a heart attack in the car park, alone. Darren finds Eamon and convinces Jack to run away while he passes Eamon off as Jack's
(James McKenna
) corpse. This is in order to get life insurance after spiralling debt.
When Darren finally tells Frankie Osborne
(Helen Pearson
) that Jack isn't dead after all, and she discovers that the man they used was Kris' dad, she worries as Malachy concern grows about his dad and that the police might find out about the fraud. She phones Kris' mobile, pretending to be a hotel owner in Normandy, France, to tell him that his father had recently left the hotel without paying. Kris assumes he has been wine tasting- as he expected. He tells Malachy, who informs the police. Malachy later returns to ask Kris whether he knows the whereabouts of their father. Later, Darren Osborne tells them that their father is the man who had been buried, not Jack Osborne. The brothers return to Ireland to tell their mother the news. Malachy then finds out he is HIV positive, Kris thinks he to has contracted it after he sleeps with Mercedes. Kris avoids contraction through the use of the PEP drug.
During the events of Hollyoaks Later, Kris and his brother Malachy return home to Ireland to bury their late father. While at home Kris bumps into his former girlfriend Lindsey whom he had planned to go travelling with but instead moved to Hollyoaks. The pair share all their favourite moments from when the where younger and eventually Lindsey tells Kris that she is going to fulfil their dream and travel the world. Kris wishes her the best and the pair go their separate ways with Kris returning to Hollyoaks. Later Kris helps Malachy get back with Mercedes McQueen
and the pair later marry at the end of the spin-off. Kris was present for the wedding and later sang at their reception.
Kris becomes friendly with couple Ravi and Nancy and later stars sleeping with them both when Nancy walks in on Kris and Ravi they all eventually decide to start a three way relationship but end the agreement because Nancy thinking its too weird. He later managed a local short-lived band consisting of Hayley, Rhys and Josh. Kris then goes onto to get a job in a call centre, then become involved with a vengeful gangster when he and his flatmates withhold a large sum of money they find. Kris then gets back with Nancy and there are problems early on in the relationship when their friend Sarah Barnes
(Loui Batley
) is murdered and Zoe gets the blame, they both stand by her until she is cleared of all involvement. Kris gets back together with Nancy but Nancy's ex Jake Dean
(Kevin Sacre
) then returns after a stint in a mental hospital for over year, this put a strain on their relationship. Kris finds out about Mercedes and Calvin Valentine's
(Ricky Whittle
) affair.
Kris gets a job as school counselor and becomes increasingly worried about Ricky Campbell
(Ashley Margolis
). When Des Townsend (Kris Deedigan
) puts Ricky in detention, Kris spots his time to shine and tries to talk to Ricky about any problems But Ricky tries to escape to get back to his Dad. Determined to do his job well, Kris tries to stop Ricky, but ends up breaking his arm. Kris goes to see Ricky at his home to apologise only to realises Ricky is a career for his disabled dad Martin Campbell (Grant Masters). Des starts making homophobic remarks to Kris and starts romours that Kris is sleeping with under age Rick forcing Kris to give up his job.
Kris starts to regularly look after Martin who is dying of multiple sclerosis
. Martin then shocks Kris by asking for his help to die. However Kris refuses and then gets him admitted to hospital. Kris leaves Hollyoaks with Zak and Jake after Zoe offers him a job party planning. Kris returns in November 2010 after hearing that Malachy was involved in a fire with Mercedes and he is dying. Mercedes decides to switch Malachy's life support machine off, Kris refuses her to. However after realising that doctors cannot do anything, Kris lets Mercedes to switch it off. Kris, Mercedes, Cheryl and Lynsey Nolan
(Karen Hassan
) then say a tearful goodbye to Malachy.
have described Kris following his love trinagle storyline stating: "With more free love than California in the 60s, Kris does nothing to dissuade those who think bisexuals are just greedy. After a clinch with Ravi, the frisky DJ falls straight into Nancy's arms, too."
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the long-running Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
, played by Gerard McCarthy
Gerard McCarthy
Gerard McCarthy is an actor, best known to television viewers for his award-winning performance as Kris Fisher on the British soap opera Hollyoaks from 2006 to 2010, to theatres-goers for his performances on the West End and at Shakespeare's Globe, and to film geeks for his role in Belonging to...
. The character first appeared on-screen in September 2006 and left in August 2010 after McCarthy quit the show. He is noted for his storylines involving the PEP
Post-exposure prophylaxis
Post-exposure prophylaxis is any prophylactic treatment started immediately after exposure to a pathogen , in order to prevent infection by the pathogen and the development of disease.-Rabies:...
drug, a bisexual love triangle, his outlandish personality and being the only permanent cross dressing
Transvestism
Transvestism is the practice of cross-dressing, which is wearing clothing traditionally associated with the opposite sex. Transvestite refers to a person who cross-dresses; however, the word often has additional connotations. -History:Although the word transvestism was coined as late as the 1910s,...
character in a British soap opera. Following his departure, it was announced that McCarthy would return in November 2010 for a short stint.
Character creation and casting
The character was created as one of four new students to be introduced into the series in 2006. At the time of creation the then producer of the series, Bryan Kirkwood described the character to actor Gerard McCarthy as "A cross between Pete DohertyPete Doherty
Peter Doherty is an English musician, writer, actor, poet and artist. He is best known musically for being co-frontman of The Libertines, which he reformed with Carl Barât in 2010. His other musical project is indie band Babyshambles...
, Pete Burns
Pete Burns
Pete Burns is an English singer-songwriter, author and television personality who founded the band Dead or Alive in 1980, for which he acted as the vocalist and songwriter, and which rose to mainstream success with their 1985 single "You Spin Me Round "...
and Pete Bennett
Pete Bennett
Peter "Pete" Alexander Bennett is an English singer, author and media personality, who won the reality television series Big Brother 7 in 2006. He has Tourette's syndrome...
from Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
— a bit of a Boy George
Boy George
Boy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
character." The character was initially intended for a 12 episode stint, but after producer saw how popular he was with viewers they decided to make him a permanent character.
Auditions were held for the part of Kris with actor Gerard McCarthy hailing from Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
going onto secure the part. McCarthy had wanted a role in the show because actor Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson is an English actor, singer, media personality and occasional presenter, best known for his former role as Barry Evans in soap opera EastEnders and as a version of himself in BBC sitcom Extras.- Career :...
had advised him to get a part to boost his profile. After initial screen tests with casting directors he was called in to meet Bryan Kirkwood who gave McCarthy the outline of the character and later he was contracted with the show long-term.
McCarthy considered leaving the series by Christmas 2008, but producers asked him to stay on to help portray a HIV storyline involving his on-screen brother.
In early 2009 speculation came from magazines that he was about to quit the series after McCarthy's statement of his character saying: "There comes a time when every character reaches a point when it's natural and believable for them to leave. I think Kris's end should be this summer after he graduates." McCarthy went on to confirm his plans to quit the series stating he wanted to do different projects. However in mid 2009 McCarthy revealed he had signed another year long contract with the show because he loves playing his part.
Characterisation
Channel 4 publicity describes Kris as a feisty male. His feisty persona is prominent in the character's scenes, now and again a softer side to the character emerges. This softer side is often most played out on-screen in scenes involving the character's brother. McCarthy spoke about how is character put his guard up around characters other than his brother, Malachy. Malachy refers to Kris as Francis still and he also said: "For a long while, Kris was just this enigma that refused to be labelled. So to have his brother around - who knows exactly who he is and knows exactly why he is - just works. You see the real side of Kris when Malachy's around, as opposed to the 'performance' he puts on with others. He's like a Jekyll and Hyde character. When he's behind closed doors, he thinks he's 'safe'."In 2009 McCarthy said of his character: "He is so 'out there', in your face and ready to shock at every turn. Every day he creates a new drama so who knows what the unconventional Kris will trigger." Discussing his character at length with The Belfast Telegraph he said "Kris is a non-conformist. If he wakes up in the morning and wants to dye his hair blue and stick a safety pin through his nose, then that's exactly what he'll do. The character is very colourful, but also very controversial". Going on to say: "He is what he is, a bolshy, ballsy lad from Belfast who doesn't give a damn. He doesn't care what people think about him. He goes out of his way to shock people and has so much confidence in himself, that no one can intimidate him. He's also very witty. I can be funny yeah, but I'm not quite as sharp as him. And of course, he can pull anyone he wants! I love Kris, he's a great character to play. When I come home from work every day, I have a smile on my face."
Kris' appearance has been a focal point of the character. At the time of auditioning for the role McCarthy perceived Kris' look to be gothic, but the casting team revealed that his look was to be aimed at provoking a reaction rather than a drag queen look, a mixture of celebrity styles taken from both Eddie Izzard
Eddie Izzard
Edward John "Eddie" Izzard is a British stand-up comedian and actor. His comedy style takes the form of rambling, whimsical monologue and self-referential pantomime...
or Russell Brand
Russell Brand
Russell Edward Brand is an English comedian, actor, columnist, singer, author and radio/television presenter.Brand achieved mainstream fame in the UK in 2004 for his role as host of Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother's Big Mouth. His first major film role was in the 2007 film St Trinians...
. McCarthy has also stated on one occasion that he doesn't believe his character is trying to cross dress or be a transvestite and rather simply creating his own unique style. McCarthy also helps to style Kris by trying to balance his look by using feminine parts along with other traditionally masculine items in the outfit. The Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
The Liverpool Echo is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Saturday, and is Liverpool's evening newspaper while its sister paper, the Liverpool Daily Post, is the morning paper...
have also commented that dark eyeliner is the character's trademark.
One particular item of the character's wardrobe caused controversy when on-screen the he wore a LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
campaign T-shirt. Off-screen Stonewall
Stonewall (UK)
Stonewall is a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity in the United Kingdom named after the Stonewall Inn of Stonewall riots fame. Now the largest gay equality organization not only in the UK but in Europe, it was formed in 1989 by political activists and others lobbying against section 28 of the...
, a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity organisation, told The Guardian newspaper it had managed to get a character from the soap to wear their campaign T-shirt. The scenes drew criticism from an extremist Christian group claiming that soap operas are being 'lobbied' into pushing a politically correct view of modern Britain into their shows. Gary Nunn of Stonewall defended the scenes stating: "One of our key priorities is to promote fair coverage of lesbian and gay people in the media and we work with programme makers to reflect this, a recent example of this is our work with Hollyoaks where the character Kris Fisher wore a T-shirt with our campaign slogan: 'Some people are gay. Get over it!'."
PEP, love triangle
Malachy FisherMalachy Fisher
Malachy "Mal" Fisher is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Glen Wallace. Malachy first appeared in 2007 on a recurring basis and became a permanent character in 2008. The character has been noted for being at the centre of a HIV plot...
(Glen Wallace
Glen Wallace
Glen Wallace is an Northern Irish actor, born in Ballymena, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland.He is most notable for playing Malachy Fisher on popular Channel 4 teen soap opera, Hollyoaks from 2007 onwards. He also played Mr Michaels in Wire in the Blood in 2006. He appeared in Casualty, playing Bill...
) was diagnosed with HIV, but had sex with Mercedes McQueen
Mercedes McQueen
Mercedes Fisher is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Jennifer Metcalfe. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 19 June 2006 as the first character to be introduced to the serial by series producer, Bryan Kirkwood...
(Jennifer Metcalfe
Jennifer Metcalfe
Jennifer Joanne Metcalfe is an English actress and model. She joined the cast of soap opera Hollyoaks in June 2006, playing feisty Mercedes McQueen.-Personal life:...
) numerous times. When Mercedes dumped Malachy, she sought comfort in Kris and the two ended up having sex together, unbeknown to Mercedes' possible HIV infection. When Malachy revealed that he had HIV to Kris, Kris admitted having sex with Mercedes, and subsequently rushed to the hospital to seek medical attention where he received Post-exposure prophylaxis
Post-exposure prophylaxis
Post-exposure prophylaxis is any prophylactic treatment started immediately after exposure to a pathogen , in order to prevent infection by the pathogen and the development of disease.-Rabies:...
drugs that made him extremely ill to lower the chances of getting HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
. He was later tested and got the clear and recovered from the medication. The use of PEP drugs was a first in British soap opera as at the time it was relatively new, and helped raise the awareness that there are precautions at lowering the risk of the disease available, post a potential infection.
One storyline for Kris has been a bisexual love triangle which resulted in a three way open relationship with Nancy Hayton
Nancy Hayton
Nancy Anne Hayton is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Jessica Fox. The character first appeared on 6 July 2005. Since the character's inception she has been involved in many notable storylines such as a three-way open relationship, drug taking,...
(Jessica Fox
Jessica Fox
Jessica Fox is an English actress. She is most notable for playing young witch Enid Nightshade in the CITV show The Worst Witch, whom she began playing in the late 1990s...
) and Ravi Roy
Ravi Roy
Ravi Roy is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Stephen Uppal. He first appeared in an episode airing on 20 May 2008, introduced by series producer Bryan Kirkwood. Since then he has been central to a bisexuality storyline and living with an aneurysm...
(Stephen Uppal
Stephen Uppal
Stephen Uppal is an English actor of Asian descent from Ormesby in Middlesbrough. He is known for playing Ravi Roy in the long-running British soap Hollyoaks, the 2009 film Freight, and also for playing characters in The History Boys at Wyndham's Theatre.Uppal gained a qualification in English at...
).
Storylines
When Kris first appears in the freshman class with Zoe CarpenterZoe Carpenter
Zoe Carpenter is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Zoë Lister. The character first appeared on-screen on 1 September 2006, as one of three new students at Hollyoaks Community College. It was announced in 2009 that Lister had quit her role in order to...
(Zoe Lister
Zoë Lister
Zoë Lister is an English actress from Stoke Prior, Worcestershire, best known for playing Zoe Carpenter in British soap Hollyoaks. She grew up in Callow Hill near Redditch. where she has lived for most of her life. She trained at the Starlight School of Dance in Winyates, Redditch. Previous to...
) and Will Hackett
Will Hackett
William "Will" Hackett is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Oliver Farnworth. The character first appeared on-screen on 01 September 2006...
(Oliver Farnworth
Oliver Farnworth
Oliver Farnworth is an English actor, best known for playing the role of Will Hackett in the long-running teenage soap opera Hollyoaks.-Biography:...
). He got into clashes with Joe from his first few scenes. He was also involved in the "The Dog" fire in which Sam Owen
Sam Owen
Samuel Liam "Sam" Owen is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Louis Tamone. He first appeared in 2004, before the character was killed off in 2006 in the well-known fire at The Dog.-Storylines:...
(Lois Tammone) sets set alight, in which his friends Olivia Johnson
Olivia Johnson
Olivia Johnson is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Rochelle Gadd. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 22 December 2005...
(Rochelle Gadd
Rochelle Gadd
Rochelle Gadd is a British actress. She played Olivia Johnson in Hollyoaks until the character of Olivia was killed off, and played Delia "Dill" Lodge in Grange Hill between 1994 and 2000...
) and Joe Spencer
Joe Spencer (Hollyoaks)
Joseph "Joe" Spencer is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Matt Milburn. He debuted on-screen during episodes airing in 2003 and left in 2006 after his character was axed by Bryan Kirkwood.-Storylines:...
(Matt Milburn) die. In later episodes Kris thinks he has HIV after Will Hack fools him into believing that his test results were positive. Later Kris started having sex with a guy called Nathan, but when his brother Malachy comes to Hollyoaks, he pretends Nathan is a friend and starts wearing masculine clothes, as Malachy doesn't know that he is bisexual or that he likes to wear women's clothes. Jessica tries to persuade him to dress up for Malachy but when he does, his brother disowns him. He takes comfort with Jess and they end up in bed together. Kris later leaves and returns a number of months later. Malachy also returns later to work on a construction job. While they still don't not agree on most topics, Malachy grows to accept his brother, and when Malachy leaves in January 2008, Kris is somewhat sad to see him go.
Another storyline the character was involved in a carbon monoxide poisoning plot. Danny Valentine
Danny Valentine
Daniel "Danny" Valentine is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by David Judge. He first appeared in 2007 and made his final appearance in 2008.-Background:...
(David Judge
David Judge (actor)
David Judge is a British actor. He is best known for playing Danny Valentine in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks.Judge has had minor roles in Doctors , Casualty , Silent Witness, The Bill...
) had made a faulty repair to a boiler, causing a carbon monoxide leak that left Kris, John Paul McQueen
John Paul McQueen
John Paul McQueen is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by James Sutton. The character debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 6 September 2006; his storylines have significantly revolved around his sexuality, evolving from the initial denial of his...
(James Sutton
James Sutton (actor)
James Sutton is an English television actor, best known for playing the parts of John Paul McQueen in the British Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks and Ryan Lamb in the ITV soap Emmerdale.-Personal life:...
), Katy Fox
Katy Fox
Katy Fox is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by actress Hannah Tointon, who was in the serial for just under a year. Katy was central to storylines, including Clare Devine's revenge....
(Hannah Tointon
Hannah Tointon
Hannah Marie Tointon is an English actress. She is best known for playing Katy Fox in the long running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, and Tara in British sitcom The Inbetweeners.-Early life:...
), Summer
Summer Shaw
Summer Shaw is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Summer Strallen. The character is most notable for being 'planted' in the show as publicity for an Andrew Lloyd Webber produced stage production of The Sound of Music...
(Summer Strallen
Summer Strallen
Summer Peta Vaigncourt-Strallen is an English actress who has performed various roles on stage and screen. Her most notable theatre credits include Meg Giry in the West End production of Love Never Dies and Maria Von Trapp in Andrew Lloyd Webber's revival of The Sound of Music at the London...
), Zak Ramsey
Zak Ramsey
Zak Timothy Ramsey is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Kent Riley. Zak first appeared in 2004, when he was credited as 'Zak Barnes'. After only four months, Riley was dropped from the programme. The character received a revival 18 months later...
(Kent Riley
Kent Riley
Kentigan Peter "Kent" Riley is an English actor, born in Fazakerley, Liverpool, & brought up in Lydiate, where he attended St Gregory's Junior School, where he caught the bug for acting, starring in many of the schools performing arts projects...
), Carmel McQueen
Carmel McQueen
Carmel Valentine is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Gemma Merna. She debuted on-screen during episodes airing in August 2006 and was introduced by series producer Bryan Kirkwood as part of the McQueen family...
(Gemma Merna
Gemma Merna
Gemma Ann Merna is an English actress. She is known for playing Carmel Valentine in Hollyoaks.-Awards:...
), Russ Owen
Russ Owen
Russell Charles "Russ" Owen is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Stuart Manning. He first appeared in August 2004 with his on-screen family and has been involved in storylines including being diagnosed with testicular cancer and kidnapping his son. It...
(Stuart Manning
Stuart Manning
Stuart Bernard Manning is an English actor and model.He is best known for the role of Russ Owen in the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, which he played from 2004 until 2009....
), and other students unconscious. Justin Burton
Justin Burton
Justin Burton is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Chris Fountain. The character arrived in 2003 and departed on 3 June 2009. Justin arrived in a family of six, however by September 2006, his entire family had left the show...
(Chris Fountain
Chris Fountain
Christopher Ryan Fountain is an English actor best known for his role as Justin Burton on the Channel 4 teen soap Hollyoaks, a role he played from 2003 until his departure in June 2009. He is also now known for playing Tommy Duckworth in Coronation Street. He played the role of PC Paul Tait in...
) later arrived to try and win Katy back and instead found everyone unconscious. After ringing Danny and finding that the boiler faulty, the pair carried everyone out saving them in the process. The storyline which had touched a very common issue in everyday life, helped save the life of regular Hollyoaks viewer Beth Cordingly, who was watching the episode when she was experiencing the same ordeal.
Kris later starts dating Summer Shaw, and his old flame Jess leaves the village with Darren Osborne's
Darren Osborne
Darren Osborne is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks. Darren was introduced by executive producer Phil Redmond as part of the Osborne family. Darren made his first on-screen appearance on 18 November 1996 and was initially played by Adam Booth, before the Booth...
(Ashley Taylor Dawson
Ashley Taylor Dawson
Ashley Taylor Dawson is an English actor and singer. He is best known for his role as Darren Osborne in the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, in which he is one of the longest serving cast members and as being a member of UK pop band allSTARS*.-Personal life:Ashley Dawson was born Wilmslow,...
) gambling winnings. His relationship with Summer soon ends when she falls in love with O.B. (Darren Jeffries
Darren Jeffries
Darren Jeffries is a British actor best known for his portrayal of Sam "O.B." O'Brien in Channel 4 soap-opera Hollyoaks. In 2007, after ten years of playing O.B., Darren announced that he was leaving the soap...
).
When John Paul listens to Kris telling a sexually confused teenager to get a life and stop thinking they are special, he calls into the radio show. Kris then needles him about his relationship with Craig Dean
Craig Dean
Craig Dean is a fictional character from the long-running British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Guy Burnet. Burnet has won many of Britain's most prestigious acting awards for this role...
(Guy Burnett). John Paul and Elliot Bevan
Elliot Bevan
Elliot Bevan is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Garnon Davies. He first appeared on 9 January 2007 as a new student. In July 2010, it was announced that Davies would be leaving the show. He made his final appearance on 15 November 2010...
(Garnon Davies
Garnon Davies
Garnon Davies is a Welsh actor who was born in Pyle , South Wales on the 16th December 1982. He attended Ysgol Y ferch O'r Sger primary school and then went on to Welsh speaking secondary school Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari...
) go to the station to confront Kris, but a blackout ends any attempt to resolve the issue. John Paul and Elliot begin interrupting Kris' broadcasts with a pirate program which makes fun of him. This continues off and on for over a month until January 2008. Kris finds out he might lose his radio show because the pirates are more popular. When John Paul tries to start up an organization for LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
students at HCC, Kris initially doesn't get along with him, but they become friends. Kris soon realises John Paul has a mystery crush, and tries to figure out who it is. He is surprised to learn the man is Father Kieron Hobbs (Jake Hendriks
Jake Hendriks
Jake Hendriks Born 1981 is an English television actor, educated at Tiffin School, Kingston-upon-Thames.-Personal life:Jake Hendriks, born Jacob Hendrik Cuddihy in 1981 in Chessington, is the oldest of three children, with two younger brothers, Joshua and Caleb...
), who tells Kris he also has feelings for John Paul.
During the second half of 2008 a new storyline was brewing which saw Kris' father become the victim of a life insurance scam. On-screen his father, Eamon Fisher (Derek Halligan) turns up at Halls wanting to see Kris. Once Kris returns, Eamon is shocked to see his son and what he is wearing. Kris then tell Eamon that he doesn't want anything to do with him and tells Elliot that he can have him as a father instead. After days of getting nowhere, Eamon leaves and tries to get a room to stay in at the pub. Upon failing, he retreats to the street and has a heart attack in the car park, alone. Darren finds Eamon and convinces Jack to run away while he passes Eamon off as Jack's
Jack Osborne
Jack William Osborne is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Jimmy McKenna. He first appeared on 18 November 1996 and is the second longest serving character although Cindy Longford and Mandy Richardson both appeared before him both have taken...
(James McKenna
James McKenna
James Stephen "Jimmy" McKenna is a Scottish actor. He has appeared on such television programmes as Hollyoaks, in which he has played the character of Jack Osborne since 1996, and A Touch of Frost....
) corpse. This is in order to get life insurance after spiralling debt.
When Darren finally tells Frankie Osborne
Frankie Osborne
Francine "Frankie" Osborne is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Helen Pearson. She made her first on-screen appearance on 9 October 2002...
(Helen Pearson
Helen Pearson
Helen Pearson is an English television actress, currently seen as Frankie Osborne in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks....
) that Jack isn't dead after all, and she discovers that the man they used was Kris' dad, she worries as Malachy concern grows about his dad and that the police might find out about the fraud. She phones Kris' mobile, pretending to be a hotel owner in Normandy, France, to tell him that his father had recently left the hotel without paying. Kris assumes he has been wine tasting- as he expected. He tells Malachy, who informs the police. Malachy later returns to ask Kris whether he knows the whereabouts of their father. Later, Darren Osborne tells them that their father is the man who had been buried, not Jack Osborne. The brothers return to Ireland to tell their mother the news. Malachy then finds out he is HIV positive, Kris thinks he to has contracted it after he sleeps with Mercedes. Kris avoids contraction through the use of the PEP drug.
During the events of Hollyoaks Later, Kris and his brother Malachy return home to Ireland to bury their late father. While at home Kris bumps into his former girlfriend Lindsey whom he had planned to go travelling with but instead moved to Hollyoaks. The pair share all their favourite moments from when the where younger and eventually Lindsey tells Kris that she is going to fulfil their dream and travel the world. Kris wishes her the best and the pair go their separate ways with Kris returning to Hollyoaks. Later Kris helps Malachy get back with Mercedes McQueen
Mercedes McQueen
Mercedes Fisher is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Jennifer Metcalfe. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 19 June 2006 as the first character to be introduced to the serial by series producer, Bryan Kirkwood...
and the pair later marry at the end of the spin-off. Kris was present for the wedding and later sang at their reception.
Kris becomes friendly with couple Ravi and Nancy and later stars sleeping with them both when Nancy walks in on Kris and Ravi they all eventually decide to start a three way relationship but end the agreement because Nancy thinking its too weird. He later managed a local short-lived band consisting of Hayley, Rhys and Josh. Kris then goes onto to get a job in a call centre, then become involved with a vengeful gangster when he and his flatmates withhold a large sum of money they find. Kris then gets back with Nancy and there are problems early on in the relationship when their friend Sarah Barnes
Sarah Barnes
Sarah Barnes is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Loui Batley. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 10 October 2005. Sarah was created by executive producer David Hanson as part of the Barnes family. In 2009 Batley quit the serial in...
(Loui Batley
Loui Batley
Louie Anne Batley is an English actress, singer and dancer best known for her role in Hollyoaks as Sarah Barnes...
) is murdered and Zoe gets the blame, they both stand by her until she is cleared of all involvement. Kris gets back together with Nancy but Nancy's ex Jake Dean
Jake Dean
Jake Dean is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Kevin Sacre. Sacre portrayed the character between 2002 and 2008, before making a return on 5 October 2009. In March 2010, Sacre was axed from the series by Paul Marquess during his major revamp and cast...
(Kevin Sacre
Kevin Sacre
Kevin Sacre is a British actor. He is most famous for his performance as Jake Dean in the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, a role he played from 2002 to 2010.-Early life:...
) then returns after a stint in a mental hospital for over year, this put a strain on their relationship. Kris finds out about Mercedes and Calvin Valentine's
Calvin Valentine
Calvin Valentine is a fictional character from the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Ricky Whittle. He arrived in July 2006 as a police officer with his mother and younger siblings and made his final appearance on 21 May 2010 after he was murdered by Theresa McQueen. Whittle...
(Ricky Whittle
Ricky Whittle
Ricky Whittle is a British actor from Oldham, Greater Manchester.-Biography:The son of former Royal Air Force serviceman Harry Whittle, Whittle grew up travelling with his father's career around the world, with a home base at Burghfield Common near Reading, Berkshire.A keen sportsman, Whittle...
) affair.
Kris gets a job as school counselor and becomes increasingly worried about Ricky Campbell
Ricky Campbell
Richard "Ricky" Campbell is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Ashley Margolis. He made his first on-screen appearance on 16 June 2009. Ricky was created by executive producer Lucy Allan. Margolis took a period of leave in 2010 to complete his real life...
(Ashley Margolis
Ashley Margolis
Ashley Howard Margolis is an English actor.-Career:He is best known for playing Ricky Campbell in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks. He has played the role of Ricky since June 2009. His main storyline revolved around his father Martin Campbell having Multiple Sclerosis...
). When Des Townsend (Kris Deedigan
Kris Deedigan
Kris Deedigan is a British actor best known for his portrayal of Des Townsend in the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks.-Career:...
) puts Ricky in detention, Kris spots his time to shine and tries to talk to Ricky about any problems But Ricky tries to escape to get back to his Dad. Determined to do his job well, Kris tries to stop Ricky, but ends up breaking his arm. Kris goes to see Ricky at his home to apologise only to realises Ricky is a career for his disabled dad Martin Campbell (Grant Masters). Des starts making homophobic remarks to Kris and starts romours that Kris is sleeping with under age Rick forcing Kris to give up his job.
Kris starts to regularly look after Martin who is dying of multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...
. Martin then shocks Kris by asking for his help to die. However Kris refuses and then gets him admitted to hospital. Kris leaves Hollyoaks with Zak and Jake after Zoe offers him a job party planning. Kris returns in November 2010 after hearing that Malachy was involved in a fire with Mercedes and he is dying. Mercedes decides to switch Malachy's life support machine off, Kris refuses her to. However after realising that doctors cannot do anything, Kris lets Mercedes to switch it off. Kris, Mercedes, Cheryl and Lynsey Nolan
Lynsey Nolan
Lynsey Nolan is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Karen Hassan. The character originally appeared in the first series of the Hollyoaks spin-off, Hollyoaks Later, as the former girlfriend of Kris Fisher...
(Karen Hassan
Karen Hassan
Karen Hassan is a British actress, born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Her work includes roles in Hollyoaks Later and Hunger. As of 2010 she is playing Lynsey Nolan in the main series of Hollyoaks.-Hollyoaks:...
) then say a tearful goodbye to Malachy.
Reception
Actor Gerard McCarthy stated that he initially worried about how his character would be received in his home city, Belfast. He spoke of his shock that 'macho men' were praising him about his character, even by drunk men. He also spoke that many people love his outspoken nature and is also popular amongst girls. The Radio TimesRadio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
have described Kris following his love trinagle storyline stating: "With more free love than California in the 60s, Kris does nothing to dissuade those who think bisexuals are just greedy. After a clinch with Ravi, the frisky DJ falls straight into Nancy's arms, too."
External links
- Kris Fisher on the E4 website